The way we can correct our path and avoid judgement is to look at our history, our personal history and the history of our nation. God hasn’t changed His toolkit. He created the Heavens and Earth. Humans have no control over those tools. Amos details to Northern Israel the abuses of the elites in the government and monarchy upon the regular citizens.
The descendants of Israel, North and South, inherited the covenant of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob at Mt. Sinai hundreds of years before. Yet, instead of living in that covenant, the children of Israel preferred to imitate the practices of the nations around and actually surpassed the surrounding nations around in their iniquity. This is why God judges the entire family of Israel much more severely than He punishes the other nations. This is the prophet’s warning in Amos 3.
The judgments that God gave Moshe (Moses) to teach the Israelite people tell us a lot about God’s character and personality. We learn how God sees us as well. It’s a difficult section to go through because these judgements cover so many issues that aren’t related directly to one another but these things have been written down for us to learn. These judgements are written for us so we can avoid incurring them on ourselves.
The 10 plagues against Mitsraim (Egypt) were judgments against the false deities of the land, to show the descendants of Yisra’el (Israel) and the people of the land Who was the true God.
The beginning of the future reign of Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) on Earth (Rev. 20:4–6), memorialized in the appointed times of Sukkot (Festival of Tabernacles) and Shmeni Atzeret (Convocation of the Eighth Day). Let’s consider this hypothetical situation: During the 1,000 year-reign of Yeshua, if someone walks the wrong direction, the errant person will hear a voice, “Turn neither to the left or to the right; walk straight!” (Deut. 28:14; Josh. 1:7; Prov. 4:27; cp. Zech. 8:20–23).
Right now, that voice is hard to hear, but during the Millennial reign, that voice will be very clear.
Why do the prophets, Yeshua the Messiah and His apostles repeatedly refer to Sodom and Gomorrah when talking about judgment and mercy?
This chapter is about justice and judgment, just as the book of Revelation is about justice and judgment. God could have taught this lesson to Abraham privately, yet God wants us to know He knew Abraham well. The LORD knew Abraham would keep God’s ways and would also make sure that his family and household would also keep and follow God’s ways. God knew that those who follow Abraham would follow his example.